#MicroPoetry|May ’22 Reflections

Change is constant and inevitable. This central truth to life’s unfolding confronts us with a direct challenge. Should we take this seriously and recognise this in our lives, those of others and all of Creation, then we must ask what impact do our choices have?

As you consider this and reflect, what do you want tomorrow to look like?

Claiming this question, and in turn, our agency is an invitation to plant seeds for a future we would want to inherit.

Sitting at a coffee shop, recently, there were two people, whom I assume were at least acquaintances. One was talking and the other was clearly elsewhere. Why?

The one talking was not, from my sense, sharing to be heard but to convince. For the listener, it was clear that being spoken at was not a helpful way for them to engage in a conversation that was clearly one-way.

Sometimes, it is not the words that invite us to listen, but actions.

In your awareness on this day, what are you seeing that is inviting you to listen?
What are you doing, that is an opportunity for others to hear where your values lie?

Learning, though clearly of benefit to each of us particularly, highlights a significant revelation generally. It is not in our own attainment of wisdom that we discover ways to be just and compassionate, but in the sharing of such revelations we collectively grow. Being committed to sharing our own learning, therefore, becomes an invitation to lifelong learning so that a community can ensure it is both resilient and reflexive in an ever changing world.

As I write this, we continue to hope that we are coming out of the pandemic. We are also confronted with a scale of violence in Europe that most had believed was a thing of the past. In all of these dire disruptions, it is easy to despair.

Yet faith’s resistance often acts as a buoy. When I look to my Christian tradition and its sacred texts, turmoil happens most often in spite of our own longings and tendency to try to keep change at bay. This is a hard truth and yet liberating. When we recognise our agency, then we are invited to assist in bringing into being the new thing that emerges from the chaotic constancy of life.

When tired and aching,
When our hearts feel barren in the midst of hurt,
We are allowed to rest.
We are supposed to seek respite and solace.

When we allow our selves to self-care, it inevitably leads to recognising that, in our vulnerability, a Light is revealed that we can then share with those still finding themselves in shadows …

There is a small park at a lake to which I like to retire to restore and refresh. In the middle of this park, nestled in between two rolling treed hills is a brook. It babbles and laughs. At this brook, birds, deer, foxes and untold feathered and furred friends congregate and commune. If you find yourself here, sitting patiently in silence’s wisdom, it becomes clear that this is not only a magical moment repeated everywhere when we pay attention, but that we are part of this intimately if we accept the invitation.

The paths that meander through our lives range from the easy to the challenging, the relaxed to the arduous. Often the journey takes us to a moment some might call achievement or success. It is in these moments that we must ask ourselves:

Do we intend to be seen in this moment or to see the world more clearly?

The answer often leads in two different directions. To which do you feel called and are you on the path in which you see more than you had prior to arrival?

There are many companions along the Way. They play pivotal roles in the choices we make when we have time and space to be in their presence. Those choices require us to nurture our own self-knowing. Without this commitment, we may find ourselves directed by habitual patterns or those with agendas that do not place the social good as a touchstone.

What practices do you explore to help you not only recognise these various companions, but also to learn the wisdom they offer in the midst of times joyful and challenging?